Bio-wise and otherwise

Sprout salad for the soul

Come mornings these days, contemplative thoughts on the day's menu start sticking around in my mind like fluffy cotton lint. So, instead of concentrating on my my morning (spiri)ritual exercise, I end up visualizing all these meals.

That's when I resolved to plan my meals better to keep my meditative mind off food.

Seasoned Rice and lentil  is considered to be a great offering to Lord Krishna.

 

Pic of Lord Krishna in the battlefield with Arjuna. Source: ISKCON 

Vegetable broth with Indian bread is light on the stomach and prevents you from dozing off  in the afternoons. Spicy Rasam (seasoned tomato 'soup' which has a dash of tamarind juice added as well- a South Indian delicacy) and rice are great for holidays, when the family likes to nap after a meal.

Well, I started preparing  well in advance, for today's lunch. Yesterday morning, I had soaked a cupful of seeds like whole Green gram and Chickpea in water. Towards evening, I had drained out the water and washed the seed with fresh water. Then I transfered the swollen seed mix into a light, wet, muslin cloth. Left it overnight in a dark, moist corner on the kitchen counter.

While waiting for the seed to germinate, here's a story of sprouts and their nutritional value. Apparently, Chinese physicians used to prescribe sprouts for curing many disorders, more than 5000 years ago. Green gram is high in nutritional and fibre value.

Nutritional value of Green Gram (Per 100 grams)

Energy : 30 calories
Protein : 3 grams
Carbohydrate : 6 grams
Dietary Fiber : 2 grams 

The protein is especially rich in the amino acid, lysine, but it is somewhat deficient in sulphur-containing amino acids. The seeds are rich in calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, potassium, folate and other B Vitamins. They also contain appreciable amounts of Vitamin C. Check this out for a general look into the nutritional value of pulses.

Early in the morning, I walked into the kitchen to check on my sprouts. I could see tiny white stalks emerge from the seed, a sign of mystic, vibrant life. I then transfered the sprouted seed into a nice ceramic bowl.  I tend to wash my sprout for just a few brief seconds in boiled water, to discourage any infections that might come about from any lurking bacteria.

I diced tomatos and cucumber nice and fine. Added it to the seed. There was a bright yellow lemon in the refrigerator and so I took it out and  cut it in two. I have this nice contraption in my kitchen that manages to squeeze out the lime juice from a lemon without  allowing the seeds to flow along with the juice. So I gently squeezed the juice on top of the salad and added salt to taste.

 

Pic taken from the web 

Now I like to season the salad lightly. So I take a small deep pan (called a 'Kadai' in India and the equivalent is probably a 'wok') and heat it on a medium flame. I add a spoonful of light oil (you can use olive or refined oil) and wait for the oil to heat up without getting too hot. I add a dash of mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. I wait for the seeds to sputter before I add finely cut green chillis and coriander leaves.I then layer the salad with the seasoning before mixing it in.

After the fenugreek step, I use asafotida in my seasoning, since this recipe was brought down straight from grandma's cookbooks. But you can add a dash of garlic instead, if you like. Both work well to add that zing to your salad.

There, I had a nice simple sprout salad. I can serve it as a side dish, along with fluffy white rice and a light curry

Unlike eating meat (which is cut out from the flesh of dead animals), when we eat sprout and salads, we are energizing our body, mind and spirit with life. Sure to do great on our health. Just try it, you will find your mind alive and awake throughout the day with no signs of lethargy whatsoever.

Tomato, onion and cucumber salad

And while on the topic of salads, here's  a pic straight out of Rachel Ray's recipe- tangy tomato, onion and cucumber salad. (Love your style, girl!)

I enjoy watching all the vibrant veggie colors in a salad glint back at me in the warm sunlight streaming from my kitchen window. It always seems to be Nature's way of saying Hello.

Posted at 08:58PM Oct 01, 2007 by Manju in Mystic masala  |  Comments[0]